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Beautiful and endlessly echoing. Artful and ingenious simplicity. – The New York Times

Superhuman Grace by SAHR NGAUJAH. – The New York Times

KEVIN MAMBO, ITO AGHAYERE, and JOJO GONZALEZ are a deft, entertaining trio. – New York Magazine

This season, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage returns to The Public with a new drama as moving and incisive as her Broadway debut play Sweat, heralded by The New York Times as a “vital contribution to contemporary drama.”

Taking us on a journey that starts in a game park in Kenya and goes around the world, MLIMA'S TALE is the story of Mlima, a magnificent elephant trapped in the clandestine international ivory market. Following a trail of greed and desire as old as trade itself, Mlima leads us through memory and fear, history and tradition, and want and need.

Obie Award winner Jo Bonney (Father Comes Home from the Wars) directs this poignant new play that reveals the surprising and complicated deals that connect us all.

Generous support for MLIMA'S TALE provided by an Edgerton Foundation New Play Award and Susan & David Edelstein.

All orders subject to $5 per ticket service fee and $2 per ticket facility fee. Service fees are waived when you buy in person at the Box Office. All fees are waived for Public Theater Members and Partners. Title, director, actors, designers, prices, performance dates & times are subject to change.

96 Elephants

Wild Aid

The illegal wildlife trade is a multi-billion dollar global industry largely driven by consumer demand in expanding economies. While most wildlife conservation groups focus on scientific studies and anti-poaching efforts, WildAid works to reduce global consumption of wildlife products and to increase local support for conservation efforts.

Goodbye Rhinos

Goodbye Rhinos's art installation, The Last Three, which currently lives in Astor Place, gives awareness to the plight of the Northern White Rhinos. The artists have passionately dedicated their lives to stopping the misled demand for rhino horns.

Mlima’s Tale

Ivory poaching isn’t just about killing elephants; it’s about removing an ecological keystone from the environment. Chelsea Clinton explains just how crucial elephants are to their surroundings, and the ways in which their loss could be catastrophic for us all.

Mlima’s Tale

Chelsea Clinton and Lynn Nottage joined Public Forum’s THE COST OF IVORY and told everyone not only about the chain of custody from elephant to high-end store, but ways in which they’re trying to encourage high-end stores to stop commodifying ivory.

Mlima’s Tale

The Wildlife Conservation Society’s John F. Calvelli joined Public Forum to discuss THE COST OF IVORY with Chelsea Clinton, Lynn Nottage, and Oskar Eustis – and he started by telling us about New York’s particular history (and continued legacy) in the ivory trade.

Mlima’s Tale

During Public Forum’s THE COST OF IVORY conversation, Mlima’s Tale playwright Lynn Nottage told us about how she discovered the plight of the African elephant – and it begins with Academy Award-winning director Kathryn Bigelow.

Mlima’s Tale

A brand new short piece of speculative fiction, published by the fine folks at Lightspeed Magazine - one that tells the story of a woman, of a birth, and of elephants. We won’t give anything more away… but suffice it to say, this one feels like a neat companion to the ghost story that Lynn has put onstage.

Mlima’s Tale

We’re so intrigued to catch this new documentary from Jon Kasbe, showing the ivory trafficking business from the perspective of the poachers. Kasbe captured over 700 hours of footage, over three years, and the result looks incredible. It’s premiering at Tribeca Film Festival in April 2018 and we’ll be there.